↑ In the early stages of my startup, I wrote a business plan and mapped out my future vision (Photo／Karen／It was all idealistic)
Do you know why having a good team still leads to failure?
Because you don't actually understand what entrepreneurship is. Entrepreneurship means expanding your team when you lack manpower, not setting up a predetermined team structure to expand your territory from day one.
As for startup teams, there's a wealth of information online these days. Many articles tell you to find compatible people rather than just professionals. I agree with this point—after all, when partners complement each other and work together, they can solve problems when difficulties arise. But here's the catch: you actually need them!
When I first started dreaming of having my own small business, I looked at successful cases. Behind each success story was a supporting team. Then I read an article titled "The Leader's Critical Task: Assemble All 9 Roles to Build an Unstoppable Team!" The article was well-written, but my point isn't to criticize it. Rather, I want to explain how foolish it is to rush into expanding your team before understanding the entrepreneurial process or actually experiencing it yourself—just as I did. (Writing this, I can't help but shake my head at my own foolishness again XD)
The article describes a management theory from a European business school professor who tracked managers worldwide for nine years. They discovered that every team consists of nine distinct roles, categorized into three types based on members' personalities and behaviors: "action-oriented," "people-oriented" (for coordinating internal and external relationships), and "strategic-oriented" (responsible for creative thinking and expert insights).
↑Many things focus on SOPs, structures, and processes, but without execution, it's all just form.
After reading that article, I "decided" to catch up with these excellent teams and become a leader, taking on this important responsibility! (So passionate!). So I naively started searching among friends and family for people with specific skill sets to join the team. I seriously organized gatherings and dinners to discuss the venture. Of course, everyone was happy and willing to help at first, but here's the key point: these friends and family members were volunteers.
We had five members total, divided as follows:
- Myself: event planning, flying to Dongdaemun, Seoul to source products wholesale (I speak some Korean), creating internal forms, social media management (writing articles, editing beauty videos, managing FB and YouTube), photography and editing, website layout
- My older sister: with online shopping experience, handled product listings, pricing, and photo editing
- Partner Rayla: excellent writer and very strong Korean skills, so she wrote Korean beauty articles and translated subtitles
- A junior who helped with ad campaigns and taught me some marketing strategies
- My second sister: financial management
↑ One of the beauty content units where we taught Korean makeup terminology—I handled layout, and Rayla did translations. (Photo／Karen／We were really serious about the startup)
↑ Each product had its own code and unique name. (Photo／Karen／Even scheduling needed careful documentation)
So with such comprehensive team division, here's the critical issue: the revenue and workload didn't actually require this many people to share the burden. In other words, this manpower was completely wasted. Plus, we all had our day jobs. I wasn't paying anyone, so I didn't know how to ask them to do more. I didn't know how to delegate work properly. They didn't know where to start either, because hardly anyone was actually placing orders. Everything needed direction from me before anything could move forward, but I didn't provide it. This was entirely my own doing—the result of naïveté and poor judgment.
↑ Looking back, getting 9,000 total views two months after launch wasn't bad! But unfortunately, I couldn't see it back then... (Photo／Karen／Growth requires experience.)
Let me summarize what I learned from this:
First: Developing Self-Judgment
With entrepreneurship trending, there's an abundance of business and startup articles. Combined with the information explosion online, you can easily find success stories and years of accumulated wisdom. For young professionals or most entrepreneurs not going all-in (full-time or massive capital investment), it's very difficult to assess how well these articles match your actual situation. Three years later, I realize this mistake wasn't entirely negative. Because looking at who I am now, no matter how busy or tired I am, I can evaluate my time, abilities, and efficiency to accomplish what needs doing. Or when I truly need help, only then do I bring in specialists for design or video editing work.
Second: Increased Patience and Tolerance for Failure
I mentioned in this series that for years I couldn't admit I'd experienced startup failure. After all, I'd invested in plane tickets and capital for that big buying trip to Korea, making it quite the grand affair. So at first, facing the lack of results from the startup was difficult. I'd brush it off by saying I had a day job, but honestly, I was too concerned with what others thought and couldn't endure a period of no progress. Now my tolerance for setbacks has increased. If method A doesn't work, I try B. If B fails, I move to C. For impossibilities, I want to make them possible. This has developed my initiative, challenged my thinking, and improved my ability to assess feasibility. My mindset is now more complete and objective—something that's not easy to achieve.
↑ Back then I even posted weekly inspirational messages. I executed every social media marketing tactic I could think of, all planned by myself. (Photo／Karen／I really had a lot of time)
Third: Don't Focus on Difficulties First—Learn to Express Your Needs Clearly
As mentioned earlier, the marketing person I brought in once told me "being a boss means giving your employees a goal and a budget, and letting them achieve it." It's a simple concept, but I just didn't have the confidence to demand it. So I only hoped he'd do well, experiment however he wanted. But unlimited freedom doesn't mean liberty; it's actually being at a loss. Through this, I understood clearly that as a leader or in team collaboration, don't focus on the difficulties first—clearly express your needs. Then adjust and adapt during execution, changing direction as needed. It's like advancing while fighting, so to speak. Once you have a goal, you have the right direction. But without an endpoint, you're just lost. That's a cardinal sin for entrepreneurs.
I'm grateful to everyone who helped me back then, grateful for their tolerance of my immaturity and shortcomings. That's what allows me to record all these details now.
Below I recommend the video series "A Chat with Content Creators" by A-Drop and Taiwanese Lads—it will definitely help you think!
【Startup Failure School—Series／Ongoing】
Jack Ma, whom I admire, once said "There are countless factors in success, but failures are all similar. Combine the experiences of all those who failed, seriously study these mistakes, and hope that everyone spends more time understanding why they failed." Failure is the greatest wealth of our lives. It means you once had the will and took action—not just daydreamed. You invested time and effort, and through that, discovered what suits you and what doesn't. Even if you ultimately fail, all the results belong to you.
Startup Failure School! Lesson One: A "Pure Heart" That's Too Simple to Persist With
Startup Failure School! Lesson Two: Skipping Market Research and Charging Ahead on "Feeling"
